


Midnight Channel

by FollowTheFirefly



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Gen, Yes that is a P4 reference
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-29
Updated: 2017-10-29
Packaged: 2019-01-26 10:20:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,261
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12555300
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FollowTheFirefly/pseuds/FollowTheFirefly
Summary: In which Kenma and Tsukishima make a gaming channel on YouTube, but the Karasuno and Nekoma teams find out.





	Midnight Channel

**Author's Note:**

> I honestly can't remember what gave me the idea for this one. I have headcanon games that I think Tsukki and Kenma would play, but how it turned into this, I have no idea. I wrote this out months ago, but life has been very chaotic for me lately so it didn't get typed up until today.

“Aki-nii, I don’t have time for this right now. And neither do you if you have to leave for your night class in five minutes.”

Without giving his brother a chance to respond, Tsukishima spun around and walked swiftly up the steps, darting into his bedroom and closing the door behind him. Breathing a sigh of relief, he pulled out his phone to check the time. He had plenty of time before his Skype meeting, but he wanted to play a bit of his game before then.

Tossing his bags onto his bed, Tsukishima powered up his laptop, the ancient piece of technology groaning to life. It had been Akiteru’s old computer and while he hadn’t much of a need for a newer model when he received it, Tsukishima was certainly in need of a new one soon.

“Come on, you can do it.” Tsukishima muttered a few words of encouragement, as if it would help the decrepit computer start any easier. 

As the loading screen finally displayed across the monitor, Tsukishima moved over to the PS4, turning it and the small flat-screen TV on. He’d found it at a yard sale one day when he and Yamaguchi were walking home from school. It was quite small, but it was reasonably priced and it did the job well, though he was growing tired of having to stand in front of the screen to read any small print.

“At least it works at all.”

An archaic buzz told Tsukishima that his computer had finally finished booting up. After waiting a few minutes to let the processor catch up with itself, he loaded Skype and logged in, returning to the PS4.

“Wonder what he’ll want to do tonight.” His thumb traced around the joystick. “I guess practice is taking longer than usual.”

He’d been playing for almost a half-hour when the familiar Skype tune echoed throughout his bedroom. His eyes flickered over to the screen across the room. 

“About time he picks up.”

Tsukishima paused the game and moved over to the laptop. With a few clicks of his mouse, a familiar face popped up on the screen.

“Kuroo keep you guys today?”

“Lev wanted to practice spikes.” Kenma sighed in frustration.

“For two hours?” Tsukishima arched an eyebrow.

“And of course Kuroo wasn’t going to say no.” Kenma crossed his arms in front of his chest.

“So I take it you don’t want to record tonight?” Tsukishima could sense the setter’s annoyance through the monitor. 

“We can. I just don’t feel like doing anything competitive right now.” Kenma reached off-screen for a glass of juice and set it next to the computer. “We can try out your bit tonight.”

“That was your idea, not mine.” Tsukishima shrugged a shoulder.

“Hinata and Yamaguchi said you have interesting reactions when you play. I want to see them,” Kenma said. “Plus, it’ll be good to have some variety, don’t you think?”

“If that’s what you think.” Tsukishima said. “But I’m already in the middle of my game.”

“We can use it as a tester. We haven’t exactly posted anything yet.” Kenma pointed out. “Gauge the sort of audience we’d get.”

“You do realize that we still need to come up with a name, right?” Tsukishima reiterated a point he’d made in their last Skype session.

“We have one.” Kenma said.

“We are not calling it the Midnight Channel.” Tsukishima said pointedly. 

“What’s wrong with it?” Kenma demanded.

“It’s probably under copyright, for one thing.” Tsukishima leaned back against his chair. “And I don’t even like Persona.”

“But we can’t think of anything else.” Kenma pointed out. “If we need to change it, we will, but let’s just keep it for now.”

“You and your damn Persona obsession.” Tsukishima acquiesced. 

“So are you recording?” Kenma reached forward and adjusted his computer screen.

“I’ve got to move the laptop over to the PS4 so I can actually see what I’m playing from here.” Tsukishima picked up the computer and moved across the room.

“There has to be an easier way to do this.” Kenma mused.

“Hey, you’re the one who keeps saying it’ll look better this way. I’m not sure how much more my computer can take, though.” Tsukishima checked behind him to make sure the power cord was still plugged into the outlet.

“Still dies the second it’s unplugged?” Kenma assumed.

“This thing is nearly as old as I am. What do you expect?” Tsukishima set the computer down on the small bookshelf near the TV stand. “And you know you’re editing this, right?”

“Got it.” Kenma nodded, leaning forward on his elbows. “So what are you playing?”

“Okay, I’m recording now.” Tsukishima checked the USB camera clipped to the top of the monitor and pressed a few keys on the keyboard. “And I’m playing NieR:Automata for the second time.”

“And you say my games are weird.” Kenma shook his head. “Shouldn’t you do an intro or something?”

“Why would I do that?” Tsukishima stared incredulously at Kenma through the monitor.

“Because it’s the first video?” Kenma said, reaching for his juice and taking a sip.

“You know, I think I like the quiet Kenma at practice better.” Tsukishima said, searching for the PS4 controller.

“Just do one or else I’ll have to add one in for you.” Kenma threatened, a wicked grin spreading across his face making him look much more like Kuroo than Tsukishima was comfortable with.

He shrugged and said, “I’d turn Lev on you, but I know that would backfire.”

“What are you even doing?” Kenma’s eyes narrowed as he watched Tsukishima search the room.

“Looking for the controller.” Tsukishima scowled. “I thought I had-aha!”

“Got it?” Kenma assumed.

“On top of the dictionary.” Tsukishima moved back over to the TV and laptop.

“You’re recording on the PS4, right?” Kenma checked.

“Of course I am.” Tsukishima had set it up before Kenma even came online.

“So let’s get started.” Kenma nodded. “And don’t forget the intro.”

Tsukishima shot a glare at Kenma before he stared at the camera like a character in a TV sitcom.

“I’m Tsukishima Kei and I’m playing NieR:Automata.”

“And I’m Kozume Kenma and this is the Midnight Channel!” Kenma chimed in with uncharacteristic enthusiasm. 

“We’re not calling it that.” Tsukishima picked up the controller and resumed the game.

“It’s better that it’s game related,” Kenma said. “And I’ll probably start with P3 when it’s my turn.”

“That’s not where it even comes from?” Tsukishima sighed. “I don’t even play Persona and I know that.”

“So what are you doing now?” Kenma ignored Tsukishima’s comment and was watching the TV screen.

“Running around trying to grind for now.” Tsukishima replied. “Just finished a bunch of side-quests so I thought I’d take a break.”

“This is the one with the machines and androids, right?” Kenma questioned, tracing around the rim of the juice class with his finger.

“Yes.” Tsukishima winced as his character got pummeled by a gigantesque machine. “Yikes, that wasn’t good.”

“I’ve heard it’s a depressing ending.” Kenma watched as Tsukishima used a few restorative items and jumped back into the fight.

“It is.” Tsukishima nodded. “But that’s a ways off.”

“Oh yeah, you said you started over again.” Kenma remembered Tsukishima’s earlier comment.

“Can’t say why because of spoilers.” Tsukishima’s fingers mashed the controller, trying to dodge and attack at the same time. 

“Seriously?” Kenma stared at Tsukishima. “It’s seriously a plot element?”

“You’d find out if you played it.” Tsukishima grinned deviously. “You still need to play one of my games since I played yours.”

“But I knew you’d like Ghost Trick!” Kenma complained. “It’s not like I was trying to get you to play Oxenfree again!”

“I’ve already played that.” Tsukishima said.

“Which is my point.” Kenma leaned an elbow against his desk. “We’re going to have a lot of work to do with this channel, won’t we?”

-

“Tsukishima! Why are you Skyping Kenma after practice?”

He didn’t need to look to see who was talking to him. No one but Hinata felt the need to shout at someone less than three feet from him. Still, Tsukishima had to wonder why Hinata felt the need to shout so much. It wasn’t as if any of their teammates were hard of hearing, though they certainly would be with the way Nishinoya and Tanaka carried on in matches.

Resigned to his fate, Tsukishima stopped and turned around to find Hinata sprinting to catch up with him, Yamaguchi and Kageyama trailing along behind.

“Yamaguchi?” Tsukishima questioned in surprise. “I thought you were going to Shimada’s for practice today?”

“Nope!” Yamaguchi proclaimed, panting slightly as he tried to catch his breath from the dash to catch up with them.

“You can’t just ignore me, you know.” Hinata glared up at Tsukishima, standing on tip-toes to gain some extra height.

“I don’t know how one could.” Kageyama smacked Hinata across the back of the head. “You’re too loud to ignore.”

“I didn’t ask for your comment, Kageyama.” Hinata rounded on the other boy.

“Is there a point to all of this?” Tsukishima figured he might as well try to bring in the topic.

“I was talking to Kenma and he said you two are Skyping later tonight!” Hinata shouted.

“So what?” Tsukishima pulled the headphones over his ears. “That’s not a crime, is it?”

“I didn’t think you guys talked at all!” Hinata went on. “Like, even during practice!”

“I’m allowed to have friends, you know.” Tsukishima shot a glare at the flame-haired boy.

“You have friends besides Yamaguchi?” Kageyama asked with genuine surprise. 

“Just because the concept of having friends is foreign to you, Kageyama-” Tsukishima started to say.

Kageyama clenched his fists. “Tsukishima you-“

“But what do you two even talk about?” Hinata interrupted him. 

“Hinata, why does it even matter?” Yamaguchi wondered, watching Hinata.

Hinata had opened his mouth to respond when another voice rang out across the school grounds.

“Oi! Tsukishima! You’ve got some explaining to do!”

“For fuck’s sake, what now?” Tsukishima sighed as Tanaka and Nishinoya raced over to the group.

“What’s going on?” Yamaguchi asked the second years.

“I just got a text from Yamamoto who said that Kuroo said that Kai heard from Yaku who told him that Lev said that you and Kenma have a gaming channel!” Tanaka spit-fired all of it off to a very weary Tsukishima.

“Wait, what?” Yamaguchi and the other first years were trying to wrap their heads around what Tanaka had just said.

“And?” Tsukishima looked at Tanaka with a bored expression.

“You aren’t denying it?” Nishinoya was already on his phone, as if he was trying to find the channel himself.

“How did Lev even find out?” Tsukishima asked. “Kenma wasn’t going to tell him because he knew that Lev would just pester us about joining.”

“I’m sure he has his ways.” Kageyama said with a wave of his hand.

“I’ll ask him!” Hinata pulled out his phone.

“Don’t.” Kageyama grabbed the phone and shoved it into Hinata’s backpack.

“I thought you hated those types of things, Tsukki?” Yamaguchi turned to Tsukishima.

“Kenma wanted to start one and I said I’d join if it wasn’t going to be obnoxious.” Tsukishima shifted the bag over his shoulder.

“But since when do you play games?” Tanaka demanded.

“Or do anything fun at all?” Nishinoya added.

“What am I, a geriatric?” Tsukishima was growing more irritated by the minute.

“I play games too, you know.” Yamaguchi felt compelled to say.

“The world’s officially ending,” Hinata said melodramatically.

“Stop being stupid,” Tsukishima smacked Hinata, who yelped and glared at Tsukishima. 

“I don’t play as much as Tsukki or Kenma, but I do play a bit.” Yamaguchi said.

“No one plays as much as Kenma,” Kageyama commented.

“Look, why does this even matter?” Tsukishima turned to Nishinoya and Tanaka.

“Because it’s something we didn’t know about you!” Nishinoya said like he was saying something that didn’t need to be said. “Or Yamaguchi, apparently.

“Which matters because…?” Tsukishima thought he was being obvious enough but apparently he still had to work on that.

“Because you’re part of the team and we should know things about each other!” Tanaka answered.

“But this doesn’t have anything to do with volleyball,” Tsukishima pointed out.

“It doesn’t have to.” Tanaka went on. “For instance, Noya has a pet hedgehog.”

“You do?” Yamaguchi and Hinata chorused.

“Her name is Henrietta and Asahi’s always afraid he’s going to squish her.” Nishinoya whipped out his phone and showed the first years a picture of a hedgehog sleeping on a pillow. “She just wants to play, but Asahi doesn’t want to get poked.”

“She’s…cute.” Kageyama didn’t seem to want to admit it.

“See? Little things like that.” Tanaka turned to Tsukishima.

“I don’t really get it, but whatever.” Tsukishima shrugged. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to go edit for tonight’s upload.”

“Wait, how long have you been doing this?” Yamaguchi asked.

“Couple of months.” Tsukishima had to think about it.

“You’ve been doing it that long and we’re just now finding out about it?” Nishinoya looked like he’d been punched in the face.

“Sounds about right, yes.” Tsukishima nodded.

“So cruel!” Tanaka pretended to be offended.

“It’s not like it affects you guys or anything like that.” Tsukishima said, turning and walking away from the group.

“Didn’t he hear what we just said?” Tanaka asked the remaining first years. 

Tsukishima ignored them, taking out his phone and dialing Kenma’s number.

“Kenma? You might want to talk to Lev about this whole Midnight Channel thing.”


End file.
